Scarriest night EVER

Last night the girls were playing and doing our regular thing. We had our night time snack, brushed our teeth and went to bed. Around 9:00 Rachel started screaming. I didn't think much of it because this happens from time to time. She got quiet then started in again, this time with a little more pain in her voice. Then she got quiet again and then started back up screaming hysterically. Now something is definitely wrong. I ran upstairs, Eric right behind me, and picked her up. She was completely limp. We couldn't get her to wake up. We tried smacking her face throwing water on her face and finally I lifted her eyelid. Her eyes were rolling in her head. I told Eric to call 911, she's having a seizure. A very long while later they finally arrived. Rachel and I went in the ambulance to the hospital and Eric followed. She finally responded when I called her by name. Overall it was probably 15-20 minutes of non-responsiveness. She was crying most of the time and when she stopped we did everything we could to get her crying again. The one thing going through my mind was, 'If she's crying she's getting oxygen'.

We arrived at the hospital, again it seemed like it took forever to get 4 miles, and she was responding and crying and acting very scared. (I don't blame her) The nurse took her temperature and it was 102.3 rectally so actual 101.3. The doctor gave her an exam and he determined that she had a Febrile Seizure.

Mayo Clinic:
A febrile seizure is a convulsion in young children caused by a sudden spike in body temperature, often from an infection. Watching your child experience a febrile seizure can be alarming. It may last only a few minutes, but it may seem like an eternity.
Fortunately, febrile seizures aren't as dangerous as they may look. A seizure triggered by a sudden fever is usually harmless and typically doesn't indicate a long-term or ongoing problem. Often, a febrile seizure occurs before parents even realize that their child is ill.
Being sure the child is safe during a seizure, offering comfort afterward and following up with a doctor's visit are good approaches for handling a febrile seizure.

We followed up with the pediatrician this afternoon. He explained everything to me and reassured me that her brain and nervous system was not affected. That she will be okay and that there is a chance this may happen again or she may never experience this again. We just have to keep a close eye on her when she starts getting a fever. She was also in the beginning phase of an ear infection. Which is probably the cause of the fever spike last night.

Thank you Dawn for coming over last night, calming me down and staying with Sarah!
Michelle, Thank you for flying over to help out!

I know this is not a happy post, but I wanted to share this because a lot of you that read this are Moms /Dads to young children. I hope that no one ever has to go through the moments of helplessness that Eric and I faced last night.

On a happier note, Rachel seemed back to her old self today. She's starting to talk more, putting words together. My favorite line of the day was, 'Uh-oh, Rachel poo poo' (she cut a loud stinker) but I did everything I could not to laugh.